That's not the point of the regs. It's not some sort of 'try before you buy' scheme

What do you base this on? DSR's do not require a reason for cancelling an order in the cooling off period. There are exceptions - so best not use the supplied SIM and keep the phone as-new as is possible, but you should be able to return it.

That's not the point of the regs. It's not some sort of 'try before you buy' scheme

What do you base this on? DSR's do not require a reason for cancelling an order in the cooling off period. There are exceptions - so best not use the supplied SIM and keep the phone as-new as is possible, but you should be able to return it.

Somebody finally talking sense, I am currently on 3 anyway but my sim only is about to expire, so i was considering checking this out first

I was going to take the new contract and use the phone for a day or two with my existing sim, then if I like it i will keep and transfer my number. If i don't I would just like to return it? I would obviously do a factory reset of the phone first

Tell you what. You order the phone, stick your sim in and activate it. Then call 3 and tell them you want to return it.
Come back then and tell me what they say

sent back 3 phones to them no problem at all 2 had issues the last 1 told them i just did not like i had them all up and running so you have it completely wrong mate YES you can return a phone to 3 100%
i used the last 1 for over a day and they was fine

Of course you can cancel...you may need to be a bit assertive if 3 try to argue with you tho.

http://www.oft.gov.uk/shared_oft/business_leaflets/general/oft698.pdf
How do the cancellation provisions apply to linked
contracts for goods and services, for example a mobile
phone and an associated airtime contract, or a modem
and broadband service?
3.30 There are normally two contracts in such situations – one for goods
(the mobile phone or modem, for example) and the other for a
service (such as the airtime or internet connection).
3.31 In both cases the cancellation period starts when the contract is
made. The time limits for cancellation of the goods and service
contracts are explained at paragraph 3.22. With these types of
contract it is possible to have cancellation periods running at different
times and for the service contract to remain cancellable after the
goods have been provided.

----

Cancellation rights (Regulation 10)
What cancellation rights do consumers have?
3.22 The stage at which you provide your consumers with the required
written information (see paragraph 3.10) will affect when the
cancellation period ends.
.
.
.
For goods:
n provided you give your consumer the required written information
no later than the time the goods are delivered, their cancellation
rights end seven working days after the day on which they
received the goods
.
.
.
For services:
n if you give your consumer the required written information on or
before the day the contract is concluded, their cancellation
rights will last for seven working days, counting from the day after
the contract was concluded, or

Can I insist that consumers who cancel an order within the
cancellation period return the goods as new or in their
original packaging?
3.58 No. Consumers are under a duty to take reasonable care of the goods
while in their possession as discussed in paragraph 3.44. The DSRs
allow consumers to examine goods they have ordered as they would
in a shop. If that requires opening the packaging and trying out the
goods then they have not breached their duty to take reasonable
care of the goods. In these circumstances you cannot insist that
consumers return the goods as new or in their original packaging.
You may ask consumers to return goods with the original packaging,
but you cannot insist on this. In the case of goods such as earrings
that have hygiene seals, you may require consumers to exercise
reasonable care by not removing the seals when examining them.

Qaaq - sending back because of 'issues' is an entirely different case from this

the last 1 told them i just did not like i had i up and running
i used it for over a day and they was fine just kept all the bits n bobs sent it back as near as it arrived but open n used no problem at all
and i got them to get it picked up from my home as well

Bottom line OP..
Yes you can try this...and yes you have the right to cancel for 7 working days starting the day after you receive the goods. Note that working days are Mon - Fri exc bank holidays. Vodafone tried to tell me that they worked weekends and that therefore I had exceeded my 7 days. They had to back down :)

Bottom line OP..
Yes you can try this...and yes you have the right to cancel for 7 working days starting the day after you receive the goods. Note that working days are Mon - Fri exc bank holidays. Vodafone tried to tell me that they worked weekends and that therefore I had exceeded my 7 days. They had to back down :)

One thing to note...depending on whether you think you are likely to keep the phone...
It may be better to find a company with free delivery and free returns.
You could then try the phone and send it back.
You could then order the phone and service from o2, 3 etc once you are sure...

It sounds more of a hassle but it may actually be easier than arguing with 3 etc.

I've been with 3 since July last year. Eight weeks ago the signal started dropping out occasionally. It was worse on an evening. Now it's at the point of not being good enough to speak on during the day too - it's like having a hearing impairment as the signal just cuts out and sometimes the call ends - so I'm struggling to hear what people are saying and having to ask people to repeat themselves often. I hadn't thought too much about it - thought maybe it was my iPhone 4. Then my partner got a Samsung Desire S delivered yesterday and he experienced the same thing immediately. It's not very good, is it? Phoning 3 hasn't provided any joy just yet - he wants to return the phone and they are not providing a returns address. It's important to get it sorted asap as his old mobile contract runs out in 4 days time.
Also, there's a noticeable lack of content when you Google an enquiry such as this - are 3 sensoring web content? Call me paranoid.
Lastly, call us something else for going with 3 again despite the issues I've been having.
I'll keep this forum updated with what happens.

Three DO insist you cannot return phones once you've put the sim in. I recently got into a row with them when after a couple of days the network proved to be crap.

They tried to refuse me cancelling even though it was a sim only deal with no phone.

Though I got it sorted, that's the gotcha in their eyes.... ie DSR isn't for you to cancel a contract. They will claim it's not the fact you used the phone - but that you had stated making calls on the sim and activated the sim and phone together.

Eight weeks ago the signal started dropping out occasionally. It was worse on an evening. Now it's at the point of not being good enough to speak on during the day too - it's like having a hearing impairment as the signal just cuts out and sometimes the call ends - so I'm struggling to hear what people are saying and having to ask people to repeat themselves often. I hadn't thought too much about it - thought maybe it was my iPhone 4. Then my partner got a Samsung Desire S delivered yesterday and he experienced the same thing immediately.

Okay - so, got some things to share. Firstly, he got a new contract with TMobile - risky, we know (to be signed up to two 2 year contracts). He decided that he was going to see this through with 3 Mobile. Then, after freaking out a little when the same thing happened with this new phone, he sat down and had a think. Eureka! He tried turning the 3G signal off on the new TMobile phone. Bingo. The problem we were both having was that 3 Mobile only operate on the 3G network. In the flat, and for about 300 yards in any direction out of the flat, it was crap (we did discuss how he could take walks when he was going to use the phone - flashback 70 years or so - we were feeling that overwhelmed and in need of a solution).

So, he had a working phone with TMobile. But a contract for 2 years with 3 Mobile for a useless phone. Okay, not useless, we could have moved house. The thought did occur.

The next step was to continue the battle to make 3 realise what they were doing (by not letting him out of the contract) was a) unfair, and b) illegal. So approx. £45 has been spent on phone calls to 3, consumer laws have been looked into and quoted in emails and letters (sent by recorded delivery). The response from everyone he spoke to was 'this is not possible, you cannot simply end your contract'.

Two or three days ago he got a call from 3 to say that they were sending him a bag to send his phone back in. He asked for confirmation in writing that his contract is going to cease. He received that yesterday - and a bag for his phone. Let's just hope that they get that back safely (of course, recorded delivery).

The crux of the legal side was that he bought the phone online. If he'd have bought this in a store it looks like it would have been much more difficult (ha!) to get out of the contract. But a cooling-off period for internet purchases is the law - I think it's seven days.

And it's lucky that he's shockingly good at writing combined with persistent.

I hope this helps somebody else who in dealing with any big corporation doesn't feel powerless if they have a justified and fair complaint. Be clear in what you say, write down everything that happens and make it clear that you have (but only if you have) the time and energy to see it through to court if needs be.

And if you want to enjoy reading some lovely, unusual complaints letters, then look here. Reminds me not to take the world, or myself, so seriously.

Anyway, it was an awful week and in hindsight the clue should have been my phone playing up that indicated there should be a bit more thought before signing so much money away.

And re. my phone. Well, they might mend the signal?!!! I do not have the time and energy right now to take on 3 mobile. They are a force to be reckoned with.

If anyone would like to contact the head office of 3 mobile then please try the following address. This was on the back of an envelope from 3 mobile - an address my partner had asked for again and again but had been refused.